


Wonderfully Capricious

by CeruleanIntrospection



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Complete, F/F, First Date, First Kiss, Fluff, I mean there's a brief panic attack near the end but it's not the main focus, Panic Attacks, Pretty tame actually it's only rated T for a bit of cursing, Threeshot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2016-12-31
Packaged: 2018-09-11 17:38:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,548
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9000295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CeruleanIntrospection/pseuds/CeruleanIntrospection
Summary: It's become a race against the clock for Peridot to finish up her science fair project, and Amethyst certainly isn't helping. When the rambunctious girl drags an unwilling Peridot for a much-needed day of relaxation in Funland, it naturally seems like a recipe for disaster...but perhaps things aren't always what they appear to be on the surface.





	1. Study Buddies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What is this, you ask? Well, simply put, my answer is: I don't know. This simply started off as a drabble of a telephone exchange between Amethyst and Peridot and turned into...well, this. I've been working on this fic for a month or so now, and I would be lying if I said I didn't have any fun doing it. So yeah! Hope you enjoy these two dorks as much as I do!

Peridot jolted awake to a sharp pain in her left hand and a smell suspiciously resembling fried eggs.

"What the...shit," she mumbled, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. She moved the desk lamp that had fallen onto her hand, which now sported an angry, red blotch from its time under the hot light bulb. Sighing, she repositioned her glasses, scooted away from her desk, and got up, attempting to twist away the pain from her body cramps. Note to self: never sleep in swivel chairs, she thought. Her shoulders were in hopeless knots; her neck felt like it was on fire.

She checked the alarm clock near her bed, the only other source of light in the room other than the lamp. "3:35," she muttered to herself, wiping the drool from her mouth. _Must've nodded off again while working._

Peridot huffed, mentally kicking herself as she settled back into her chair. One day, six hours, and forty minutes. That was all she had. She couldn't afford to keep dozing off in the middle.

She was usually so good at keeping up with due dates...three years of high school with straight A's and not a single all-nighter was nothing short of commendable. She had only started forcing herself to finish projects in the dead of night during senior year.

She was wondering just what had happened to her to put her off her stride when a bright green light emanated from her back pocket. She pulled out her phone and groaned when she looked at the screen.

Scratch that, Peridot knew _exactly_ what had put her off her game.

_"Amethyst."_

Naturally, everyone would gravitate towards Peridot when it came to group projects; she didn't mind doing all the work. Better to have it done her way than only put in partial effort and receive a poor result. Everyone had had their turn with her, from jocks like Jasper to nerds like Pearl, and each were a uniquely aggravating experience for her. Jasper would just lean back in her chair and stick her clunky combat boots in Peridot's face, complaining the whole time Peridot made calculations and typed up abstracts; Pearl would bicker with Peridot about how her responses weren't accurate enough ("it's 5.800 milliliters, not 5.8. Use significant figures!") and threaten to take over the project entirely. But Peridot would persevere regardless, knowing that when the time came to turn in the assignment, she could finally part ways with her partner.

It was a win-win situation. Amethyst shouldn't have been any different, right?

How wrong Peridot was. It had been almost three months since she had given the strange girl her phone number; she had sidled up to her in class and claimed Peridot as her partner for their chemistry project.

Peridot had studied her the first time they met: short, chubby, muscular, with an unnaturally white mane of hair framing a roundish face. Her numerous golden ear piercings glimmered as she sauntered towards Peridot, her hands nonchalantly stuffed into the pockets of a faded, red baseball jacket. Peridot decided she was a mix between a jock and a hipster.

But that still didn't explain why her former lab partner kept Peridot's phone number stored on her phone long after the project had been done. Amethyst's calls had now become an almost weekly event; sometimes it was even more than once per week. Peridot would have at _least_ understood if she called for homework help or any other educational purpose, and to be fair, sometimes Amethyst would ask questions about formulas and equations. But along with those also came questions about Peridot's favorite snack (mint chocolate chip cookies), what kind of music she listened to (ambient electronic), or if she had ever ridden on a rollercoaster (no). There was really no point in Amethyst's conversations; all they did was eat up her precious time. And yet Peridot would never learn from her mistakes, immediately sliding right to answer the phone every time Amethyst's name showed up on her lock screen.

 _...Shit._ Perhaps her nasty habit of procrastination was actually her own fault.

She sighed and tossed her phone onto her bed. Her mellow synth pad ringtone eventually died out. If it really was important, Amethyst would call again. Peridot couldn't afford to waste any more time. She picked up a screwdriver with her good hand, resting the burnt one in her lap, and turned to face her science fair project.

"Phew. Alright, buddy. Just a few more adjustments and all I'll have to do is upload your software into you—" she paused, dropping her screwdriver and craning her neck towards the phone which was vibrating and humming incessantly on her bed. She _really_ had to remember to silence it sometime soon.

Peridot grit her teeth and got up, advancing towards her bed. Perhaps she should answer it.

Just this one time.

Just to warn Amethyst not to disturb her anymore.

Peridot fell back onto her bed, the cushiony mattress and cool bedsheets soft and inviting to her after dozing off in her unforgivingly hard chair. She stifled a yawn as she pressed her phone against her ear.

"Hey."

"Hey, study buddy!"

Peridot rubbed her eyes. "I don't know why you keep calling me that. Our project was turned in three months ago."

"Heh, fair enough. So? _Que pasa?_ What's shakin'?"

"Oh, you know. Just burned my hand falling asleep under a hot light bulb. The usual."

"Woah, dude, you okay?"

Peridot examined her hand. "It's kind of blackish-red, but I'll live."

"Go put some ice on it or something!"

"Nah. Mom's sleeping. Don't wanna wake her up. She'd butcher me if she found out I've been staying up this late. I'll just run it over cold water later."

"Mmm. Gotcha. So, uh, Peridot..."

Peridot lay there, waiting for Amethyst to change the subject to food or movies or whatever it was that was going on in that whimsical, inconsistent mind of hers, but the line remained eerily silent. Peridot glanced at her phone to check the call time; nearly two whole minutes had elapsed without a single word from Amethyst. She had a nasty, tight feeling in her chest; anyone would have in a situation like this. Usually, Amethyst would never shut up.

"Um...Amethyst?" she said uncertainly.

"Oh! Sorry there, Per, I was just, uh...gettin' a snack! Cheezy Chaaaps. Heh." The distant pop of a plastic bag could be heard in the background.

"Oh, uh...okay." Amethyst still sounded...different on the line to Peridot. Nervous, almost. It was unlike her. It made Peridot feel uneasy.

"Amethyst. Are you okay?" The words escaped her mouth before she could do anything about them. She grimaced. _See, this is why you never have any time left. You keep wasting it on her._

"Hmm? Oh, yeah! Doin' just dandy." Peridot's shoulders relaxed as she heard Amethyst crunching on her chips. "By the way...d'you think long hair looks better tied up or loose?"

"I—What? Why do you keep doing this? It makes no sense!"

"Mmm, you're right. I do wear it down all the time. Maybe I should tie it or something. Whaddya think? Bun? Ponytail? Braid?"

"No! I mean..." Peridot sighed. "Why do you keep asking me all these random things? Why do you care about what I eat or what I wear or watch or listen to? Or my preferences in hairstyle? How is any of that _useful_ to you?"

"Well...you ever wanna know someone, Peri? Like, know-know?" Her voice seemed oddly quiet. Peridot shrugged it off; perhaps her receiver was dirty.

"I don't understand what you mean."

"I mean, like—like knowing everything about a person. Not just their name and stuff. What they like, what they're scared of, what makes 'em tick—it's just so boring to know someone's name and face but never what makes them different, what makes them a person, y'know? It's like being surrounded by robots. Who are _you,_ Peri?"

"Hmm, who am I...I'm a student trying to finish her robotics project," Peridot decided. "And you're getting in the way of it, so if you'll excuse me—"

Amethyst huffed. "Oh, come on, Per. I'm trying to be deep. Thought you loved that kind of intellectual junk."

Peridot rolled her eyes, doing her best to ignore the smile tugging at the corners of her face. "Not at three in the morning. What are you doing up so late, anyways?"

"I think you mean what am I doing up so early. I conked out soon as I got home from school." She snorted.

"What? What about your babysitting job?"

Amethyst snorted. "Ah, Steven's in like, eighth grade. He can take care of himself. Greg's just an old worrywart."

Peridot couldn't help but let out a small laugh in disbelief, shaking her head. "So you just slept for eleven hours straight? That's crazy."

"Ha! Well, I'm known for doing the impossible. Like dragging you someplace that isn't home or school for once."

Peridot blinked. "What?"

"You heard me! That's why I called. Saturday. Funland. 1:00. You game?"

"What?" Peridot shot up. "No! No games! I don't have time for this!"

"But—!"

"Two words, Amethyst," Peridot hissed into the receiver. "Science fair."

"Yeah? Well, three words, Peri: you're a square."

Peridot scoffed. "Actually, that's four words. You're is a contraction of you and are."

"Whatever, wondernerd. What are you even doing for science fair, anyway?"

"I'm utilizing an artificial neural network based off my own coding to create a robot that adapts to its current situation based on its prior experiences."

"Uh, English, please?"

"I'm programming a robot so that it learns from its mistakes instead of following the same set of rules over and over."

"And you couldn't've told me that the first time?"

Peridot sniggered. "I could have. I just wanted to show off."

"Pfft!" Amethyst let out that strange, long laugh of hers; wheezy yet loud, peppered with snorts. It was also regrettably infectious, draining away any of the remaining hostility Peridot had had towards her.

"'Kay, but seriously, Peridot," Amethyst said, suddenly taking on a stern tone. "You never go out anywhere. You really wanna be cooped up in that room all day with Mister Bolts-For-Brains?"

"It's a robot. It doesn't have a gender."

"Not my point. Look, I've asked you out _sooo_ many times—"

Peridot nearly dropped her phone. _"Asked me out?"_

"What—? No! Oh nonono—that's not what I meant, I—" Peridot could practically see Amethyst fumbling with her phone on the other side as she spoke. "I meant asking you to come out with me to places! Like the fry shack or the beach! _Jeez, Peridot!"_

"Whatever," Peridot snapped, her face growing hot. She fiddled with a loose thread on her socks.

Amethyst was right; she was an utter social recluse. Whenever Pearl tried to invite her to the next chemistry club meeting, she would hurriedly wave her off. If her neighbor Garnet attempted to strike up conversation with Peridot when she saw her on the sidewalk, Peridot would pick up her pace and answer in terse monosyllables. Lapis and Jamie had handed out flyers to come see the school's upcoming art and poetry exhibition. Peridot had tossed hers into the trash. _Sour Cream,_ of all people, had tried to talk to Peridot once after stealing a glance at the playlist she was listening to; he was promptly tuned out with a few quick jabs of the volume button on her phone.

People were just far too...complicated. You couldn't program them like robots. They were unpredictable, potentially volatile, and passionate to the point where it could prove disastrous; quirks that Peridot could admire, but only from a distance. For seventeen years, she had settled with finding happiness in the more reliable things in life: her books, her machines, and a stable Wi-Fi connection.

And yet it stung. It stung whenever she glanced over at Amethyst's table at lunch, occupied by Pearl and Garnet and filled with noisy shrieks and laughter. As she sat at her usual table at the opposite end of the cafeteria, she'd pull out her laptop and wonder exactly what it was those three were talking about to yell so vehemently. She'd smile to herself, thinking it was probably mostly due to Amethyst, who yelled everything regardless and infected the entire table with her enthusiasm. She was probably saying something _much_ more interesting than whatever Ronaldo, the only other occupant of Peridot's lunch table, had to offer (at this point, anything was better than his tall tales of shapeshifting, mineral-based aliens. He probably only sat with Peridot because of her name).

And now, she thought, violently tugging at the loose thread in her sock, she had the _audacity_ to think Amethyst had asked her out on a date, of all things, when Peridot couldn't even hold a conversation with the cashier at the local bakery (but perhaps that wasn't her fault. Lars didn't seem to want to talk with anyone).

Everyone in Beach City seemed to know one another. Everyone except for her.

What was _wrong_ with her?

"Yo, Earth to Peri!"

Peridot snapped to attention. "Huh?"

"Dude, you coming or not? I mean, I'm not gonna force you or anything, but—"

"Yes," Peridot said, leaping off her bed and glancing at her alarm clock. 3:50. One day, six hours, and twenty five minutes. Perhaps an hour or two with Amethyst couldn't hurt. "I'm coming."

"Oh." The line remained silent for a few seconds before Amethyst spoke again. "Wow, I, uh, wasn't expecting that."

"What, so you don't want me to come?"

"No, no! I do! You just...never come out much. Just surprised me is all."

"Yeah? Well, I'm full of surprises...Ams."

A series of wheezes and snorts emanated from Peridot's phone once again. She frowned. "What? What did I say wrong? You come up with weird nicknames all the time!"

"I don't know!" Amethyst exclaimed after her laughter had subsided. "I don't know. That was just...really cute."

"Oh! Uh—" It was official; Peridot's face was now on fire. Amethyst's cackling in the background certainly wasn't helping. "Well, uh, gotta go now," she said finally, her cheeks still burning.

Amethyst chuckled. "Alright. Catch you tomorrow, Per-Bear. Adios."

"Right! Seeyoutomorrowbye!" She jabbed the end button and fell back onto her bed with a sigh.

People were definitely complicated. But Amethyst...she was something else entirely.

What was she going to wear? What was she going to say?

Why did she care so much?

Perhaps her decision was poorly made, fueled by sleep-deprivation and the espresso she had ingested roughly two hours ago. But it was too late now. She couldn't imagine what would happen if she just decided not to show up tomorrow.

 _Peri, you totally stood me up back there!_ Amethyst would say when she saw her at school on Monday, pouting. Or perhaps she would just not talk to Peridot at all. No more phone calls, nicknames, or late-night quips and weird questions.

She bit her lip, trying to imagine what it would be like without any of those. It made her feel...strangely empty. Perhaps it was because she was a person of routine; three months of Amethyst being a part of her daily schedule made the thought of her suddenly disappearing just seem...a bit unsettling. Just the thought of lying to Amethyst made her feel guilty, like she was a disappointment. She couldn't afford to ditch her.

She sighed and got up, deciding to put her things away and call it a night. Or a morning, considering it was 4:02. One day, six hours, thirteen minutes. She walked to the bathroom, nursing her burnt hand with her good one as she thought about what tomorrow held. There was no turning back now.

"Catch you later, study buddy," she muttered, turning on the sink to run her burn over the cold water.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mint chocolate chip cookies are very much an actual thing and I highly recommend you try them.
> 
> Also, yes, Amethyst is Latina! I headcanon her as Puerto Rican, to be precise. Peridot's black with Zimbabwean immigrant parents, but more on that later (it's not super-relevant to the story but hints are sprinkled here and there).
> 
> Anyways, thanks so much for reading! Up next is their trip to Funland together, which was honestly one of my favorite chapters to write. Until next time! :)


	2. Worth Taking A Risk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alternative chapter title: In Which Peridot Finds Out She's A Bit Gayer Than She Originally Intended.

Saturday was hot and humid. From the entrance, Funland looked crowded and chaotic. Apparently all these people had nothing more productive to do with their free time.

"Nuh-uh," the man at the front gate said when Peridot tried to offer him a ten dollar bill. He wagged a finger in her face. "Only Beach City residents get the discount. You have to pay the whole fifteen bucks for your ticket, kid! Tourists are always appreciated, though! May I interest you in an annual pass?"

"What the— _tourist?"_ Peridot sputtered. "I _live_ here!"

"Hmm..." The man hunched over a bit, scratching his bald head. He gave her a once-over. "You sure about that? You don't look too familiar. I'll need some verification."

Peridot obliged, albeit grumbling, and reached for her wallet to grab her ID.

"Yo, Mr. Smiley!"

Peridot looked up as Amethyst bounded towards the entrance, waving her arms in the air. "Peridot's a resident! It's cool."

"Huh." Mr. Smiley considered this. "You know this kid, Amethyst?"

"Yep!" Amethyst swung her arm around Peridot's shoulder. "This here's Peri the mega wondernerd. She likes to stay in her room all day and watch shows about camping and be boring."

Peridot shoved Amethyst's arm off. "I do not watch _'shows about camping!'_ I only watch one show about camping, and it's _only_ because the plot and characters are actually complex and intriguing unlike all the other mindless drivel on television these days. And I can certainly make my own introductions." She cleared her throat and stuck out her arm to the man in front of her.

"Hello, Mr. Smiley. My name is Peridot Mugabe and I've lived here for approximately thirteen years. I just...don't get out much."

"Uh..." Mr. Smiley looked at the outstretched arm in confusion before chuckling and shaking her hand. "Nice to meet you, Peridot! You know, Beach City's a beautiful place. You should get out more. Support your local businesses." He winked.

"Erm...I will keep that in mind," she replied as he handed her a ticket.

"Great!" He beamed and gave Peridot and Amethyst two thumbs up as they made their way into the amusement park. "Enjoy your visit to Funland. And try not to break anything! I'm still paying off my last lawsuit!"

* * *

"That man was, uh, interesting," Peridot said, shoving her hands into her pockets.

Amethyst snorted. "Ha! You think he was interesting? Beach City's _full_ of weird people, Per."

"Really?"

"Yeah! This whole town's a sitcom just waitin' to be filmed." She threw her head up and laughed as they wove through the crowd inside the park.

"Mmm." Peridot wasn't quite sure what else to say; the sudden change in surroundings was throwing her a bit off.

Everything was so...so _bright_ and _noisy_ in Funland. The shrieks emanating from the roller coasters in the background and the rainbow of stalls filled with colorful games and plush prizes assaulted her senses. She crinkled her nose as the smell of burnt hot dogs and sickly sweet cotton candy infiltrated her nostrils. In the midst of the new and unusual, she decided to focus on something a bit more familiar, only to realize that even _Amethyst_ looked out of the ordinary today.

She had shed the threadbare baseball jacket she usually sported, choosing instead to show off her bare, muscular arms in a black tank top. Her ripped leggings had been swapped out for a newer-looking pair of denim shorts, and her unruly mane of hair was tied up into two large twin buns on either side of her head. Her lips were a deep, shimmering purple in the sunlight. Amethyst never wore makeup.

"You look different," Peridot observed.

Amethyst nearly stopped in her tracks. "Does it look bad?"

"What? No..." Peridot narrowed her eyes. "Since when have you cared about your appearance?"

"Uh—well, I..." Amethyst refused to meet Peridot's gaze. "I dunno," she mumbled after a lapse of silence, shoulders slumped as she picked up her pace. "Just wanted to look nice for once."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Peridot picked up her own pace as well until her footsteps matched with Amethyst's. The two pounded against the boardwalk in an almost hypnotic rhythm. "You always look nice!"

Amethyst stared at her, mouth slightly agape in what appeared to be mild shock before breaking out into a grin. "Aww jeez, Per, I'm blushin'."

Peridot relaxed. Amethyst was back to normal again. Well, normal by Amethyst standards, at least. She was trying to recall if Amethyst had ever been this skittish around her before. Even last night was a bit odd, with Amethyst tensing up for no reason like this...but before she could say anything about it, a deep, abrupt rumble emanated from her gut.

This time, Amethyst did stop in her tracks. "Woah! Dude, was that you? Thought that was an earthquake at first."

Peridot snorted. "Nope, but there just might be one soon if I have to wait any longer for lun— _gah!"_

Amethyst grabbed her by the arm and started running. "Well, I hope you don't mind waiting just a little longer!" she yelled. "We gotta ride the Thunder Bird while the line's short. And it'd be nice if you make it through without barfing all over me."

* * *

Peridot had successfully managed not to barf. Well, on Amethyst, at least.

"You done yet?" she heard Amethyst call from outside the restroom. "You've been in there for like, half an hour."

"Almost!" she said, carefully untangling a particularly troublesome knot in her afro. Her brief albeit chaotic trip on the Thunder Bird had done quite a number on her hair. She had an entire night of detangling ahead of her once she got home. The rest of her hadn't fared too well, either. Peridot's stomach clenched in on her, angrily protesting against the loss of the toaster pastries she had eaten for breakfast. She sighed and gave her hands one more quick rinse before walking out of the bathroom.

"Here." Amethyst thrust a water bottle in Peridot's face as she exited. Peridot gladly obliged, seizing it and chugging down half of the bottle in less than a minute. She sighed as she screwed the lid back on and handed it back to Amethyst. "Thanks. That's somewhat better, I suppose."

Amethyst smiled at her sheepishly. "Sorry. Forgot you weren't used to roller coasters."

"I still don't understand how _you're_ used to them. How could anyone enjoy experiencing five consecutive high-speed rotational cycles in less than three minutes?"

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Per, the loop-de-loops are the best part." She shook her head and chuckled. "Whatever. You still up for grabbing lunch with me?"

"It's more like me grabbing lunch for you," Peridot grumbled, reaching for her wallet. The two started heading to the nearest food stand. "I still can't believe you didn't bring any money other than for your ticket."

"Hey, I did bring money! Enough to buy a bottled water."

"Wow. So like, a _dollar."_

"Aww c'mon, Peri, I'll pay you back! Don't you trust me?"

"You still haven't given me back the two quarters I lent you for that soda last month."

Amethyst snorted. "Dude, that's just petty. I paid you back with a candy bar the next day!"

"The wrapper was already open. And it was _half-eaten."_

"Oh, heh. That's right." Amethyst shrugged. "My b. I'll pay you back this time, though. Promise! You want me to spit on it just in case?" Amethyst held her right hand up, ready to hack into it and offer to shake it with Peridot's.

Peridot shuddered. "No! I'll buy you lunch, just _please_ don't make me touch your spit." she sighed in defeat and pulled out two five dollar bills. "How much will this get us?"

Amethyst counted up the money and grinned. "Oh, just enough."

Apparently, 'just enough' meant a pretzel, a hot dog, and a large soda—all of which they had to split in half. Peridot leaned back on the bench they were resting on and attempted to console her empty stomach while Amethyst rattled on about all of the colorful denizens of Beach City.

"—And then there's Barb," Amethyst said in between bites of pretzel slathered in a disgusting combination of mayonnaise, chocolate sauce, and something red that Peridot didn't even want to know the name of. "She's the local mailwoman. She's like, forty, but she's really cool for an old lady. She beat me in a roller-blading competition once even with that brace on her leg. And you should see her at a dance-off! The woman's got some moves. Oh! And then there's Vidalia! She's a really sick painter. She used to be my babysitter, but now we just hang out and see who can insult each other the best. We're really chill, it's great."

Peridot swallowed the last of her hot dog and stared down at her knees. "Wow, everyone here seems so...interesting," she said.

Amethyst chuckled. "Well, yeah. There's never a boring day here in Beach City. So, uh..." Amethyst scooted closer. "Why don't you ever wanna be a part of it?"

Peridot frowned. "I do! I just..." she sighed. "I just never know how. Or if it's even worth it."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean...I never know how to talk to people. And I never know what's going to happen to them. People are just so—so _unpredictable._ And everything is fleeting. What's the point of experiencing things and establishing relationships that are bound to end at some point anyways?"

She stopped there, glaring down at her knees and chewing on her lip in silence until something closed over her hand, warm and firm and soft.

"Peridot."

She looked up. Amethyst was even closer to her than she was prior; Peridot's face was inches away from hers.

"Don't you get it? That's _exactly_ why it's worth it," Amethyst said. Her deep brown eyes bore into Peridot, steadfast and refusing to look away. "If life's so short like you say it is, Per, then why make it miserable? I mean, I don't wanna be _that_ kid, but...you only live once. You only get to be Peri the Mega Wondernerd _once._ No do-overs. You gotta take all the time you got and make the most of it! Sure, maybe you crash and burn sometimes. Maybe...maybe _I_ crash and burn sometimes." Amethyst's gaze fell to the floor. "Or a lot." Her grip on Peridot's hand tightened, but Peridot didn't mind; curiosity and concern consumed her more than anything else. This was a side of Amethyst she had never seen before, and it was fascinating in a strangely worrisome way.

"Can you...elaborate?"

"Well, you say you're scared, Peri. But do you think I'm not? You think taking risks isn't worth it. I think...I think _I'm_ not worth taking risks _for._ Maybe it's not the same thing you're feeling, but close enough."

Peridot blinked. "You mean...you feel as if you're too inadequate to form relationships with others?"

Amethyst snorted. "If you wanna Peri-phrase it, then yeah. Guess that's one way to put it."

Peridot's voice betrayed her as she looked at Amethyst, cheerful and boisterous and loud, now simply staring at the floor blankly, solemn and pensive and eerily speechless.

A million thoughts ran through Peridot's head; the most prevalent one, as always, was that people were far too complicated. If Amethyst were a machine, she would not have strayed from her default grin, her odd jokes, her passionate rambling.

And of course, Peridot knew that machines were not infallible, either, but she still knew how to fix them. A simple rewiring or reboot would do the trick, and the machine would be back to performing its intended function.

But Amethyst's hand felt warm on top of Peridot's. It was golden-brown and sticky with sweat, the fingertips decorated with chipped, purple nail polish. Amethyst wasn't a machine. Peridot had to approach her from a different standpoint.

"Amethyst." Peridot took a deep breath as the girl sitting next to her looked up. "Maybe I can't change the way you look at yourself. But when I look at you...I see someone who isn't afraid to make mistakes—and no, not just because you make them quite often."

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Gee, thanks, Peridot."

Peridot bit her lip. "You know that's not what I meant! You're—you're not afraid to explore the world. You're not afraid to talk about your feelings—and if you are, then you're _incredibly_ good at not showing it. And I..." Peridot stared at her free hand, the one Amethyst wasn't covering. She furrowed her brows as she glanced at the bandage wrapped around her lamp burn and then back at Amethyst. "I admire that, even if you don't. I think that's worth investing my time in."

Peridot watched in silence as Amethyst's frown slowly melted away. It was replaced by a small smile; not as huge as her usual grins, but just enough for her eyes to regain their familiar twinkle once more.

"Y'know, you can actually be pretty sweet sometimes."

Peridot stiffened. "You're welcome," she mumbled, heat creeping up into her cheeks.

Amethyst laughed. "Hey, don't get too cocky now." She got up and stretched, throwing away their food wrappers. "So, you up for another ride?"

Peridot shot up. "No! No more rides!" She warily placed a hand over her stomach. "I'm still recovering from the last one."

"Don't worry, dude," Amethyst said, grinning. "I'm thinking of something a bit more your speed."

* * *

The Ferris wheel was _exponentially_ better than the Thunder Bird. There were no loop-de-loops, for starters, and even though Peridot and Amethyst's gondola was compact, it was still roomy enough for Peridot to stretch her legs comfortably. She watched Beach City slowly shrink below her as the Ferris wheel lifted her up.

"So..." she muttered. "The purpose of this ride is to provide you with an aerial view of the town?"

Amethyst laughed. "Not everything has to have a 'purpose,' Peri. But yeah, I guess. Pretty sweet, huh?" Amethyst stuck her arm out and pointed. "I can see my house from here."

"Uh...Amethyst? That's my house."

Amethyst shook her head. "No, no, the one right across from the car wash."

Now it was Peridot's turn to laugh. "What? That's not where you were pointing at all!"

"Pfft." Amethyst gently nudged Peridot in the chest with her elbow. "Well, not everyone can be as perfect as you."

"Oh! Uh—" Peridot racked her mind for a response, but nothing comprehensible occurred to her; she finally settled for giving Amethyst a stiff, awkward smile while fiddling with a strand of her hair. "Heh."

She _knew_ it was illogical for her to blush at such a simple remark. It was simply a playful comment; Amethyst was always full of those. It meant nothing. And yet she could feel her cheeks growing warm as Amethyst grinned back at her. She shook it off. Perhaps it was just the weather.

But the weather had surprisingly mellowed out since morning. A pleasant, gentle breeze tickled Peridot as she looked out at the town, which now resembled a child's playset filled with tiny, animate dolls. The sky was a pale blue with slight tints of purple, wispy clouds hovering lazily in the air. Amethyst continued to point out the various buildings below them as Peridot leaned back against her seat, basking in the warm, buttery sunlight.

"That pink one near the park is Pearl's house. You should see the front, it's full of roses and daffodils and stuff. And then there's an herb garden in the back." Amethyst snorted. "I dunno how she has the time take care of all of them, but they're her babies. She's almost as big of a nerd as you are. _Almost._ And then Lapis lives right over there, next to the beach. Pretty close to Funland, actually. It's full of all this weird junk. I found a fish tank in her backyard once that was just full of stuffed animals. And another time she just TP'd her whole house. She calls it art." She laughed. "Oh! And that's Steven's place, right next to the car wash..."

Amethyst's words all melded together in Peridot's ears, her abrupt snorts and wheezes of laughter oddly soothing.

They had just reached the top of the Ferris wheel; it would take a while to go back down, but Peridot didn't mind. She liked being enveloped in the balmy breeze, listening to Amethyst go on and on about this strange town she had lived in for most of her life yet never bothered to explore.

For the first time in months, she had forgotten about the various projects and tests piled up on her plate. She felt at peace. Peridot sighed contentedly and closed her eyes. She could stay like this forever...

* * *

"Yo, sleeping beauty! Wake up. The ride's over."

Peridot's eyes snapped open as Amethyst prodded her cheek. She shot up. "Gah!"

Amethyst snickered as she hopped off of the gondola, which was now only inches from the ground. "Didn't know my little tour of Beach City was so boring it'd put you to sleep."

Peridot gave a small gasp. "No, nonononono!" she exclaimed rapidly, exiting the gondola. "You weren't—I mean, it was just so nice up there, I—" she wrung her hands. "I just closed my eyes for a second and I haven't slept in three days and I didn't mean to—"

"Woah, Peri. Chill. I was just kidding, it's cool. But I gotta tell you, you drool like a dog when you sleep." Amethyst grinned. "It's _awful."_

Peridot stiffened. "You mean, I fell asleep on..." she trailed off, hoping Amethyst wouldn't confirm her suspicions.

"Yep! Dozed off right on my shoulder."

"Oh, god..." Peridot groaned and slapped her forehead. "I'm so sorry."

Amethyst snorted. "Don't worry about it! So what if you think I make a nice pillow? I'm kinda flattered, actually."

Peridot blinked. "So...you don't mind?"

"Pssh! 'Course not. Just don't try that with Pearl. She'd freak." Amethyst paused, considering this. "Actually, do try that sometime. That sounds hilarious."

Peridot smiled, rolling her eyes. "I won't make any promises."

_Plop._

Peridot's smile faded as she felt a drop of water hit the back of her hand. Another hit the bridge of her glasses and trickled down her nose. She looked up at the sky, which was slowly beginning to morph into a dull, washed-out hue of grey.

"Uh...Amethyst? What's the nearest closed structure here?"

"Hmmm..." Amethyst considered this. "House of mirrors. But they're closing it down for renovation. And then there's the bathroom, but I think you already know that."

_Plop plop._

The clouds were beginning to cluster together. The rain began pouring down more fervently. Peridot was wiping her glasses with her shirt when a thundering boom cracked the sky and made her jump a foot in the air. The park was already half-empty.

"Amethyst! We should get out of here!"

Amethyst grabbed her hand. "Gotcha!" she yelled over another large roar of thunder. "Just follow me!"

* * *

Peridot did not understand why this town's weather was so _ridiculously_ capricious. Her phone's weather app had predicted a hot, humid day, and she had dressed accordingly in shorts and a loose flannel.

And yet here she was, weaving through the streets of Beach City with Amethyst, getting significantly drenched in the process.

"What the—Amethyst, you just passed my house!" she cried as they sprinted onwards. "We could've waited out the storm in there!"

"Dude, no. You're not going back in there yet. You're just gonna head straight to doin' your nerd stuff again. I've got something a little more interesting in mind."

Peridot was incredulous. "Like what?!"

Amethyst chuckled. "Oh, you'll see."

Peridot considered responding, but her legs and lungs were both beginning to burn as she gasped for breaths. Gym had never been her strongest subject. She tightened her grip on Amethyst's hand and settled for rolling her eyes instead.

But she had to admit: she'd much rather be running through the streets, out of breath and getting drenched by the downpour with Amethyst than all by herself.

With Amethyst than with anyone else, actually.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mugabe is a Shona surname meaning "the strongest one." I felt like using a surname like that would be both ironic (considering Peridot's physical capacity) and a bit fitting because I headcanon Peridot's mom in this AU as Yellow Diamond. I wanted Peridot's family to be entrepreneurs owning a successful diamond mine to tie back into the whole Diamond motif for Peridot in canon, and since rich diamond deposits are found in Zimbabwe, I decided to make Peridot of Zimbabwean descent. Not really relevant to the story, but yeah. Just a little blurb for anyone interested in deciphering my thought process, lol.
> 
> And yeah, Lapis is that weird art student that no one understands. She always walks into class half-dressed in her PJs with a backpack filled with anything and everything but her schoolwork. Gotta love her.
> 
> Anyways! Just one more chapter to go! Four more characters will make appearances in this one. Hopefully it'll be up before the new year. Thanks for reading! :)


	3. Wonderfully Capricious

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the chapter length! Hope it isn't too unwieldy. Anyways, I promised to finish this up before the new year, and I'm here to deliver!

Amethyst skidded to a halt in front of a large row of buildings. When Peridot looked behind her, she could see the Atlantic Ocean bobbing up and down in the distance.

"You—took us to—the other—side—of town—?" she asked Amethyst in between breaths.

"Yeah!" Amethyst didn't seem to be winded in the slightest. Perhaps being captain of the school's dance team was a bit more useful than Peridot initially thought it was. She tugged Peridot by the arm into the nearest building. Peridot shivered, realizing just how wet she was as she walked into the dry, warm room.

"Woah," she breathed, taking in the scene around her.

The whole room was bathed in a hazy, purple light emanating from the neon tubes hanging from the ceiling. Rows of arcade consoles stretched out in every direction, emitting rhythmic bleeps and eight-bit music.

Amethyst grinned at her. Peridot didn't know exactly when it had happened, but Amethyst's buns had become completely undone. Her mane of white hair was now down to her knees, a tangled, dripping mess. Amethyst didn't seem to notice. Or perhaps she just didn't care. Her lipstick had faded a considerable amount as well, leaving her lips an almost pastel shade of purple.

...It didn't look all that bad, actually.

"Funland Arcade," she informed Peridot, snapping her back to attention. "Only a dime a game."

Peridot frowned. "And we're completely broke. I spent the last of my money on lunch." She bit back a _which you still owe me for, by the way._

Amethyst waved her hand dismissively. "No prob. I know my way around here."

"Of course you do," Peridot sighed. "Try not to do anything illegal, will you?"

"Can't make any promises on that, P-pod." Amethyst craned her neck, scanning the building before running up to three teens gathered around a console in the middle of the arcade. Even for a social recluse like Peridot, there was no mistaking who they were: the most popular kids in school—the most popular kids in town, even.

"Yo, Sour Cream! Jenny! Buck!" Amethyst yelled, running up to them.

Buck nodded at her and held out his fist, which Amethyst promptly bumped with her own. Sour Cream muttered a "hey" in between listening to...whatever it was with his headphones. Jenny grinned and put a hand to her hips.

"Amy! What's up? And ooh—" Jenny smiled deviously as she eyed Peridot. "Who's your _girlfriend?"_

Before Peridot could even open her mouth, Amethyst just yelled "No!" Jenny tilted her head in confusion.

"Uh...it's not like that," Amethyst said hastily, averting her gaze from Jenny.

"Really? Just assumed, you know, since—"

"You're holding hands," Buck finished.

"Wait, what? I—" Peridot looked down and realized she hadn't let go of Amethyst since she had dragged her out of Funland. "Shit!" She let go, overcome by a wave of embarrassment. "Sorry."

Amethyst smiled back, but it looked weak and flimsy. Nervous. "Nah, it's fine. I, uh...I didn't even realize until now."

Jenny snorted. "Right. Like I'm gonna believe _that."_

Amethyst rolled her eyes. "Ugh, get off my case! Accidents happen. 'Sides, you should already know Peridot. She goes to school with us!"

"Oh, wait!" Jenny said, glancing at Peridot. "You're the kid who won the science fair last year, aren't you?"

Peridot sighed. "Apparently, that is my only definable attribute, yes," she deadpanned.

"And the year before that. And the year before that."

"That would be me."

Jenny gaped at her. "Girl, you are like, crazy smart! What's your secret? My biology final's coming up and I am so not ready."

"Prob'ly 'cause you skipped school to see that metal concert on review day."

Jenny stuck out her tongue. "Oh, give it a rest, Buck." She turned back to Peridot. "So? How do you do so well at school? I'd kill for that kind of motivation."

"Ah, you wouldn't, Jen. Trust me." Amethyst draped an arm around Peridot's shoulder. Apparently, her embarrassment at making physical contact with Peridot had only been temporary. "She spends so much time on her grades that she never actually goes out and does stuff. Did you know it's her first time visiting the arcade? And she's lived here for _years."_

"What? No way!"

Amethyst nodded. "Yeah way. So, that, my friend, is why we're desperately need a dime right now."

"Uh, just one dime?" Jenny asked.

"Well, a dime and a string, to be exact." She stretched out a hand and grinned.

Jenny's eyes widened a bit in realization before she shook her head and chuckled. "Girl, you are _so_ bad."

"Tell me something I don't know. So...you got the goods?"

"Yeah, yeah," Jenny said, fishing a dime out of her pocket. She tossed it into Amethyst's open hand. "Hey, S.C.!" she yelled to the lanky boy in headphones. "You still got those earbuds that broke earlier this morning?" Sour Cream nodded and dug out a pair of light blue earbuds. Jenny took them and and handed them to Amethyst.

"Here, this good enough for a string?"

"Yep, I'd say we're all set." Amethyst grinned.

Peridot narrowed her eyes. "All set for what, exactly?"

"Oh, a few rounds on the old Bopper."

Jenny rolled her eyes. "The Bopper? You always use that thing. We get it Amy, you've got some sweet moves."

 _"Peri_ doesn't know that yet, though."

Peridot thrust her arms out in frustration. "Know what? Stop being so unnecessarily cryptic and just tell me what's going on!"

"I won't tell you, Per, I'll show you." Amethyst grabbed Peridot's hand once more, her smile far more solid than it was mere minutes ago, and set off for the mysterious 'Bopper.'

* * *

Amethyst knelt down and faced the console, swinging Sour Cream's pair of broken earbuds in front of her like a lasso. She had tied the coin on the end.

Peridot tapped her foot impatiently, looking at the platform Amethyst was kneeling on. It was encoded with several arrows pointing in different directions, divided by a thin metal strip in the middle—an indication that the device was meant for two players, probably. "So, what is this?" she asked.

"Bopper. It's a dancing game." Amethyst slowly stuck the end of the earbuds with the dime on it into a coin slot on the console; Peridot could not recall Amethyst ever doing something with such patience before.

Peridot frowned. "And why would that require you to tie your coin to a string?"

"Uh, 'cause I wanna play more than one round! Duh."

"I don't understa—" Peridot snapped her mouth shut as the console's screen transitioned from idle animation to an array of flashing neon lights. Energetic bass boomed from the speakers above. Amethyst yanked the string back out of the coin slot, the dime attached to it intact. She turned to Peridot and grinned, pushing herself up. All Peridot could do was gape in amazement.

"I—wait—" she sputtered. "I thought we had no—I mean, you can _do_ that?"

Amethyst shrugged. "Hey, nothing's stoppin' me."

A snort escaped Peridot as she crossed her arms and shook her head. "Amethyst, you are _so_ bad."

Amethyst winked. "'S just what I do. Anyways, you ready to check out my mad dance skills?"

"Depends. Are you just going to wave your butt in my face the whole time?"

Amethyst raised an eyebrow. "Depends. Is that what you want?"

"What the—of course not!"

Amethyst chuckled as she chose a song from the list onscreen. "Oh, c'mon, Peri. You know you want the Big A."

"You. Are. _Disgusting,"_ Peridot hissed.

"I'm just honest. Sue me. Oh! Hold that thought. Song's starting!" The speakers on the console began belting out the lyrics as arrows appeared on the screen.

_I can't help it if I make a scene, stepping out of my hot pink limousine..._

If the song was right about one thing, it was that Amethyst did, in fact, make quite a scene. She whirled around the platform, her stocky legs moving a mile a minute. Even though it was completely unnecessary and not required by the console, the rest of her body swayed with the music as well. Her hair was a shocking white blur that swirled around her as her shoulders and arms jerked rhythmically to the beat. It wasn't like she was dancing to the music. It was almost as if she were a part of the music.

Peridot had never seen anything like it.

Amethyst twirled to a stop at the last beat, sweaty and breathless. "Whew!" She glanced at the screen as she tried to even out her breaths. "Perfect score. What can I say? I'm a natural."

"You put it on medium," Peridot muttered.

"What?"

"You didn't choose the expert level. Wouldn't a perfect score only be commendable if you achieved it at the highest level of difficulty?"

Amethyst frowned. "Well if it's so easy, Per, then why don't you give it a go?"

"Wha—I never said it was _easy,_ I just—"

"C'mon, I'll play you! Expert level. You game?"

"No, no, no," Peridot said, holding her head in her hands. "I can't dance!"

Amethyst dragged her up onto one of the dancing platforms, grinning deviously. "You can't dance, or you don't dance?"

"Can't! Don't! I mean—both!"

"Only one way to find out."

Peridot's shoulders tensed as she glared at Amethyst. "What are you going to achieve from humiliating me?" She bit her lip.

Amethyst's grin fell flat as she stepped over to Peridot. "Woah, hey. Peri, I just want you to have fun. Look," she said, pointing at the console screen. "You just step on the arrows under you at the same time they reach the middle of the screen. Nothing much to mess up on. And even if you do, guess what? It doesn't matter! It's just a game! It's for fun. You're not gettin' a grade on it or anything. But it's okay if you don't wanna do it," Amethyst added hastily. "I mean, skeeball's pretty fun too I guess—"

"Give me the coin."

Amethyst blinked. "What?"

"You heard me. Hand me your game-swindling contraption."

She grinned and tossed it to Peridot. "Sounds so sketchy when you say it that way."

* * *

"Left! Right! Right! Down! Left and right! Down! Up! Up and left!"

"Dude, do you really have to yell out every step you're doing? I can't even hear the lyrics!"

"It helps me—left! It helps me concentrate. Up!" Peridot stomped on the arrow pointing upwards precisely when the corresponding symbol reached the center of the screen.

"But where's the fun in dancing to something you can't even hear?" Amethyst hopped off the dancing platform. "See? The song's over! And I didn't even figure out how to dance to it."

"What do you mean? The instructions are right up there!"

"I'm not just gonna stomp on those arrows like a robot, Per! Dancing isn't just about the _steps._ It's about how you feel about the music too. You gotta move your whole body. You gotta just—just let loose! You weren't doing that at all!"

Peridot scowled. "That doesn't even make any sense! The game's objective is to accurately step on the arrows on the platform corresponding to the ones on the screen. Isn't that exactly what I did?"

"Well, yeah, but like—Peridot, you just—you gotta just _feel_ it, you know?"

"No."

Amethyst groaned. "Dude, I don't know how else to explain it! I..." She trailed off, placing a hand on her chin in thought. "Hmm. Think of it like...presentation points."

"I thought you said this wasn't a grade!"

Amethyst snorted. "Yeah, but since you're treating it like one, let's just assume it is for sec. 'Kay, so let's say you made a trifold for your nerd bot or whatever—"

"It's an impressionable AI bot."

"Right. What you said. Anyways, even if you got all the data and work done, do you think you're gonna get a good grade if the trifold looks like crap?"

"...No."

"Bingo. That's the way dancing is. Even if you got all the steps down, you gotta add your own flair to it. Does that make any sense?"

"Uh...somewhat, I suppose."

Amethyst shrugged. "Better than nothin'." She got back onto the platform and swung her coin into the slot, yanking it back out once the screen flashed to life once more. "So, you ready to show me some of that Peri pizazz? Here, I'll choose something easy."

_I can't help it if I make a scene, stepping out of my hot pink limousine..._

Peridot wrinkled her nose as the song started. "Ugh, this again?"

"It's a good one to warm up with! Just let yourself loose, Per!"

"Loose," she muttered, stomping to the left as she relaxed her shoulders slightly. "Is this good enough?"

Amethyst snorted. "Not even close! Don't restrict your body! Just let it flow with the beat."

"I don't—"

"Presentation points, Peri!"

Peridot nodded and stared at the screen, resolute. "Right!" She thrust her arms out and added a bounce to her step as she stomped, eventually deciding to add in a few bodily rotations as well—isn't that what Amethyst did?—and she had never felt more alive. Feeling her heartbeat accelerate, sweat trickling down her face as adrenaline shot up her spine—it was...oddly exhilarating, to say the least. She maneuvered through the instructions on the screen with ease, stepping on each arrow accordingly, but the goal of 'letting loose' had been achieved as well. She let out a celebratory whoop, spinning around one final time as the song ended.

Peridot hopped down off the platform, breathless but with a triumphant grin plastered on her face. "So—was that loose enough for you? Uh..." she frowned. "Amethyst?"

Amethyst simply stood there, fixed on her platform, mouth open like a fish, looking incredulous.

"Dude," she muttered. "You dance like a robot."

"Great," Peridot snapped. One more thing she couldn't do right.

"Hey, hey—I never said it was bad!" Amethyst said. "I mean...I've just never seen someone move like that before. All stiff and mechanical and stuff. Pretty sick, actually." She grinned. "Care to show off those moves at Beach City High's dance troupe?"

"Was that blatant advertising?" Peridot asked, smirking.

Amethyst batted her eyelids innocently. "Maybe."

Peridot snorted. "Well, thanks, but no thanks. Wouldn't wanna humiliate the team captain by joining after beating her on the Bopper."

"Wait, what?" Amethyst jerked her head towards the console's screen. "You gotta be kiddin' me."

"The numbers don't lie, Amethyst."

She pouted. "Oh, come on! Serves me right for goin' easy on you, I guess."

"Ha! You're bluffing. You just don't want to admit that you got beaten fair and square."

Amethyst groaned. "I can't believe I got beaten _by_ a square."

"Wow, thanks," Peridot said, rolling her eyes. "So are you saying you want a rematch?"

"Yeah, best two outta three!"

Peridot stuck her tongue out at Amethyst. "Meh. _Fiiine._ Sore loser."

"Play nice, you two."

"Ack!" Peridot turned around, startled. That certainly wasn't Amethyst. Her eyes widened as she recognized the intruder.

"Oh! Miss—Miss Sard." She bit her lip.

Miss Sard broke out into a gap-toothed grin, reaching out her hands to ruffle the heads of her two students.

"Amethyst! Wonderful to see you making the most of your weekend. I hope this means all those make-up assignments I gave you are finished?"

"Uh..." Amethyst gave a quick, nervous chuckle. "Yep! Totally done, Miss Sard."

"Splendid!" she said, oblivious to Amethyst's soft groan of _oh, shit_ as she turned to Peridot.

"And you! Miss Mugabe, my star student! Nice to see you have a life outside of books, too!"

"Uh—yeah." Peridot gave a weak smile. "Heh."

"I would ask how well science fair is going, but I'd hate to spoil myself—I love surprises. Your limb-enhancement prosthetics from last year simply blew all the other projects out of the water! It was revolutionary!" She jabbed a finger in Peridot's direction. "I expect great things from you, young lady. I know you won't disappoint!"

"I...yeah, won't disappoint..." Peridot gulped.

"So, Miss Sard! What're you doing hangin' out at the arcade, anyways?"

Miss Sard feigned a hurt expression, putting a hand to her chest. "My, my, Amethyst! It appears to me that you don't think adults are allowed to have fun! I simply came here for a game of skeeball against my lovely colleague, Miss Opal."

"Uh..." Amethyst scanned the room, arms crossed. "I don't see her anywhere."

Miss Sard frowned, adjusting her glasses. "Oh, goodness. That's...quite worrying. I hope she didn't get lost again...Heavens know how that woman doesn't manage to lose all her paperwork! Well, I'll leave you two to it, then!" She ran for the exit. "Stay safe, kids!" she called out as she left. "Lovely seeing you two!"

Amethyst gave a low whistle. "Well, that sure was something. So, how about that rematch, Peri?"

Peridot didn't respond.

"Uh, Peri?"

Peridot couldn't respond.

She couldn't see Amethyst or the Bopper or the rest of the arcade. Everything was a blur, smeared around the edges no matter how pristine her glasses were. All she could see was the robot on her desk at home, half-finished and sitting right across from a pitifully empty cardboard trifold.

_I expect great things from you, young lady._

"Per! Peri! Peridot! Your breathing's all shaky, are you okay?" Amethyst's voice seemed tinny and distant. Everything around her was slipping away.

_I know you won't disappoint!_

Peridot could feel remnants of hot dog and pretzel mingling together in her stomach and threatening to slither up her throat.

She couldn't disappoint Miss Sard. She couldn't, she just _couldn't._ All those A's on every assignment and project she had pored over every single night—they were all she had. They were all she was. God, if this project didn't live up to her expectations—if it was inadequate even in the _least—_

"Peridot. Answer. Me. Please!"

Peridot didn't know how she did it, exactly, but she managed to coax a complete, albeit shaky, sentence out of her mouth.

"I have to go."

"What?" Amethyst's voice sounded unusually small. Almost like she was hurt.

Oh, goddamn it. Hurting Amethyst was the last thing she'd planned to do. But Peridot was too worn out to explain much of anything.

"I—I'm sorry. Goddammit, Amethyst, I'm sorry. But I'm leaving. Right now. I have to."

She couldn't even bring herself to hear Amethyst's response; the only thing she had energy for sprinting through the arcade door and into the cold and dreary downpour outside.

* * *

Peridot wished the rain were warmer.

That way, she wouldn't be able to tell the difference between the hot tears pouring down her cheeks and the icy droplets splashing on her from above.

She focused all of the energy she had left on steadying her breaths. She wanted to stop feeling like she was about to break apart at any moment.

"Peridot!"

She froze. Perhaps if she didn't respond, Amethyst would leave her be.

But of course, Amethyst proved herself to be recklessly relentless. As always.

"Don't even think about running away. You know I'll catch up to you eventually."

"I can still try," Peridot muttered under her breath.

"Oh, okay—so first you say you wanna spend time with me and now you wanna run away from me?" Amethyst gave a sharp, humorless laugh. "Make up your mind! I thought you were having fun."

Peridot grit her teeth. "I was!"

"Then _what_ is your _problem?!"_

That was enough to make everything welling up inside of Peridot explode. She spun around on her heels to glare at Amethyst, the words rushing out of her mouth in a violent torrent. "My problem?! What about _your_ problem, Amethyst?! You know I keep to myself. You know I never talk to anyone. And you know there's no use in trying to change that! You heard Jenny. I'm just the—the Science Fair Girl!" she spat. "So why do you try so hard? Why do you keep trying?! Why do you—"

"UGH!" Amethyst stomped her feet with such force that Peridot was terrified the wood panels underneath them would snap in half. She promptly shut her mouth.

"Do you really think I know _why,_ Peridot?! I don't! I'm just as fuckin' clueless as you are! I coulda just finished up that stupid project with you and deleted your phone number and never talked to you again and I don't know why I didn't! I don't know why I tried! I don't know why I'm _trying!_ All you ever do is push me away! If you don't like spending time with me, then why the hell do you even do it?!"

"Because—!" Peridot's torrent of words had stopped as abruptly as it started, leaving her with a complete deficit of responses. She took a shaky breath. "Because..." she tried again. Nothing came out, despite the millions of thoughts floating around in her brain. She swiped at each one fruitlessly, watching as every word she knew drifted away from her grasp. A lexile level of 1900L proved useless if one couldn't even string their words together in a comprehensible sentence.

She stared at Amethyst, who was approximately only six or so inches away from her. Even when Peridot took off her glasses to wipe them clean of the rain, she could still see Amethyst so clearly—her chest heaved softly behind that black tank top; her round, full lips were open ever so slightly; a faint shade of lavender, revealing a sliver of those brilliantly white teeth she showed off whenever her mouth curled up into that goofy grin of hers.

Her hair was thick even when it was soaked, hopelessly tangled strands of silvery white glistening with water. Black, purple, white. Peridot remembered Amethyst telling her those were her favorite colors, during one of their many, many phone calls in the past three months.

And that was all it took to make all of Peridot's thoughts flood back to her mind instantaneously.

"Because your favorite shade of purple is lavender," Peridot blurted out. She continued on hurriedly before Amethyst could respond, afraid that her thoughts would betray her again if she didn't vocalize every single one of them. "Because you always drink hot sauce straight out of the bottle. You watch cheesy romance movies just to make fun of them. You use way too many filters on every single photo you take. You put strawberries and whipped cream all over your beef tacos and you don't care in the slightest if anyone says it's disgusting. Sometimes, if you're sleepy enough, you accidentally slip into Spanish and I have no idea what you're saying but I've never corrected you because I love the way r's and n's roll and bounce off your tongue! You like cooking and dancing and watching cartoons and when you smile you get a dimple but only on the right side of your face and you always mismatch your socks and—and—" Peridot exhaled, trying to compose herself. "I don't even know what I'm getting at anymore. I just...I keep talking with you because, well...do you ever wanna know someone, Amethyst?"

Amethyst simply stared at her, dumbfounded, her breaths soft and her eyes wide. The smell of petrichor and the heavy weight of silence hung in the air.

"Like... _know_ know?" Amethyst ventured finally. Peridot swallowed and nodded.

Even through the rain, Peridot could see the water pooling in Amethyst's eyes. When her lips parted, the words came out softly:

"Yeah, Peri, I do."

And then Amethyst pulled her in before she could even react, their lips colliding and making the hairs on Peridot's neck bristle. She was taken aback, but something inside her—a hunch, perhaps—told her not to tear away. She wrapped her arms around her, giving in completely. Amethyst was much, much warmer than wet and dismal weather outside.

They only pulled back when they were both rendered absolutely breathless. Peridot took in deep gasps of air, her cheeks burning—but then those heavy breaths quickly morphed into laughter as she saw the utterly bewildered look on Amethyst's face.

"I—" she said, in between breaths, "I— _dude._ I can't _believe_ that just happened." Her lipstick was a smudged mess, and Peridot had the sneaking suspicion that some of it had gotten onto her own face as well.

She snorted, wiping a tear from her eye. "So, was this meant to be a date all along?"

Amethyst shrugged, quickly regaining her composure (or perhaps feigning doing so). "I guess. The smoochfest wasn't part of the plan, though."

 _"Smoochfest?_ It was just one kiss!"

"Yeah?" Amethyst smirked. "I can easily fix that." She smashed her lips up against Peridot's again, and Peridot could feel heat radiating from her cheeks as blood rushed up to her face once more.

It was wet and sloppy and haphazard—nothing close to the perfectly staged kisses she'd seen on television between Paulette and Percy (although it was obvious Percy and Pierre were objectively the better couple, but that was another story). Despite it being nothing like she had expected, it left her wanting more.

Humans were volatile, humans were capricious. And Amethyst was wonderfully so.

It was as if her senses had been magically heightened as her lips met Amethyst's. She smelled like diesel fuel and chocolate donuts; an odd combination, to say the least, but as soon as it hit Peridot's nostrils she never wanted to forget it.

As they pulled back once more, Peridot began fiddling with a clump of Amethyst's hair, trying to undo the knot in it.

"Amethyst?"

"Mmm?"

"What's the time?"

Amethyst froze. "Oh, shit, Peri—I totally forgot about your project—oh dude how much time do you even have left _I'm so sorry—"_

"Just tell me what time it is."

She obliged, taking an arm off of Peridot's shoulder and shoving it into the back pocket of her shorts. She dug out her phone and unlocked it. "4:49. Oh my god, Peridot, if it's due tomorrow—"

"Amethyst. It's okay."

Amethyst sighed and slumped her shoulders. "Mmkay. You, uh, you want me to stay up with you tonight, Peri? Y'know, give you moral support and junk."

Peridot grinned. "I'd love that."

4:49 PM translated into eighteen hours and forty-six minutes—although a good portion of that would be spent on a dancing rematch with Amethyst (perhaps even a dancing tournament, depending on Amethyst's level of sportsmanship) followed by the trip home after the rain had died down a bit. She still had to upload her bot's software, run numerous diagnostics on it, type up her data analyses, and paste everything on her trifold. Almost seventy percent of the project had to be crunched into less than a day's time.

But as Amethyst wrapped her warm, soft arms around Peridot's cold, shivering shoulders and pulled her in even closer, Peridot supposed another all-nighter wouldn't hurt her.

Just this once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnd there we have it! Second-ever Steven Universe fic, first-ever human AU fic. Hope I did the characters justice! I actually wasn't intending for the Cool Kids to make an appearance originally, but once I began writing this it just seemed so right to put them in, lol. Jenny's the shipper on deck, I suppose. I don't blame her.
> 
> Fun fact: I first started writing this fic while procrastinating for science fair. The irony, huh?
> 
> Thank you so much for reading and Happy New Year! :)


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